21 March 2026
Largest Animal Disease Outbreak in US History: Bird Flu Impacts 197 Million Birds as Spring Migration Begins
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The ongoing highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreak in the US has now impacted over 197 million birds since February 2022, marking the largest animal disease outbreak in American history, according to USDA veterinarian Dr. Chelsey Shivley in a Brownfield Ag News report. She warns of rising risks this spring as wild birds migrate north, urging poultry producers to strengthen biosecurity.
In the past week, USDA APHIS confirmed outbreaks on commercial farms in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Michigan, and Indiana, affecting 15.2 million birds in the last 30 days. Highlights include 870,000 table egg layers in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania; 354,100 pullets in Cecil County, Maryland; 51,700 turkeys in Kent County, Michigan, as detailed by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development on March 16; and 7,600 ducks in Elkhart County, Indiana. A backyard flock in Ohio was also hit, per CIDRAP News.
Complicating matters, a truck hauling dead bird flu-infected ducks from Maple Leaf Farms crashed into a ditch on US Route 33 in Churubusco, Indiana, Friday morning, prompting a hazmat response and highway closure, Fox News reports. Officials secured the site with no public health threat identified.
Wild bird detections are slowing, with only 25 confirmed cases nationwide recently, including Canada geese in New York's Bronx, says CIDRAP. Nationwide, about 200 million birds in over 2,100 flocks have been affected since 2022, Iron Mountain Daily News notes, with an expected uptick soon.
Elsewhere, University of Georgia research published in Scientific Reports reveals 84% of 134 tested black vultures in the southern US carried H5N1, highlighting risks to scavengers. The CDC's latest flu surveillance through March 14 confirms no human H5N1 cases in the US, maintaining low public risk if poultry is cooked properly.
Thank you for tuning in. Come back next week for more. This has been a Quiet Please production, and for me, check out Quiet Please Dot A I.
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In the past week, USDA APHIS confirmed outbreaks on commercial farms in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Michigan, and Indiana, affecting 15.2 million birds in the last 30 days. Highlights include 870,000 table egg layers in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania; 354,100 pullets in Cecil County, Maryland; 51,700 turkeys in Kent County, Michigan, as detailed by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development on March 16; and 7,600 ducks in Elkhart County, Indiana. A backyard flock in Ohio was also hit, per CIDRAP News.
Complicating matters, a truck hauling dead bird flu-infected ducks from Maple Leaf Farms crashed into a ditch on US Route 33 in Churubusco, Indiana, Friday morning, prompting a hazmat response and highway closure, Fox News reports. Officials secured the site with no public health threat identified.
Wild bird detections are slowing, with only 25 confirmed cases nationwide recently, including Canada geese in New York's Bronx, says CIDRAP. Nationwide, about 200 million birds in over 2,100 flocks have been affected since 2022, Iron Mountain Daily News notes, with an expected uptick soon.
Elsewhere, University of Georgia research published in Scientific Reports reveals 84% of 134 tested black vultures in the southern US carried H5N1, highlighting risks to scavengers. The CDC's latest flu surveillance through March 14 confirms no human H5N1 cases in the US, maintaining low public risk if poultry is cooked properly.
Thank you for tuning in. Come back next week for more. This has been a Quiet Please production, and for me, check out Quiet Please Dot A I.
For more http://www.quietplease.ai
Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI